Synopses & Reviews
Egypt is as old as history itself. It is home to some of the world's greatest treasures, a pantheon of dazzling gods and kings, and the roots of the civilised world. Today it is the political and cultural heart of the Arab world and a country of startling contrasts and contradictions. River in the Desertis Paul William Roberts' account of his travels through Egypt, delving into the hidden depths of this great country - at once familiar and yet unknown. Setting out to explore every facet of ancient and modern Egypt, Roberts encounters magicians, politicians, monks and archaeologists. In Cairo he spends a terrifying night alone in the central chamber of the Great Pyramid and is smuggled into the clandestine gathering of a Sufi tariqa. In Nubia he is carried by boat to the great temple of Isis at Philae and reads Death on the Nilewhilst sleeping in Agatha Christie's bedroom. He embarks on an eventful voyage up the Nile from Aswan to Luxor,
Review
"Unconventional, highly entertaining, instructive and beautifully written, River in the Desert is an elegant, seductive account of this ancient culture's history, mythology and politics." --Publishers Weekly
"Roberts' style is passionate, angry, and often very funny...the work of a writer in love with his subject, not a journalist coldly dissecting it. This book reads like a very contemporary version of the English nineteenth-century travelogues that produced so many fine novelists." --Oriana Fallaci
"Informative and entertaining: Roberts is the sort of witty, knowledgeable, stimulating guide every armchair travellers hankers for but seldom finds." --Kirkus Reviews
About the Author
Paul William Roberts is the author of several acclaimed books, including
Journey of the Magi. He writes for
Harpers,
Vanity Fair,
The New Yorker,
The Atlantic Monthly,
Washington Post,
New York Times and others
. Table of Contents
Cairo: Tea in the Sahara with Michael Jackson * Hearts with Wings * Poetry and the Dust of Sorrow * The Grand Illusion * The Prison of History * Symphonies in Stone * The Knaves and the Graves * Sacred Science and High Wisdom * The Professor and the Heretic * Howard and Porchey: The Real Curse of Tutankhamen’s Tomb * Shelley’s Poem and Captain Bill’s Hot Air * The Neighbourhood Bully * The Last Free Men * Behind the Zulu Mask * From Peace to Pizza * A Careful Rehearsal of Death * Moses’ Legs and Liars in Very High Places * Not Another Book on Egypt * An Invisible City * Unknown Soldiers and Last Resorts * Inside the Gates of Eden * Bull’s Head Soup * Islands in the Sand * Epilogue: Cry Me a River * Suggested Selected Reading List
Cairo: Tea in the Sahara with Michael Jackson * Hearts with Wings * Poetry and the Dust of Sorrow * The Grand Illusion * The Prison of History * Symphonies in Stone * The Knaves and the Graves * Sacred Science and High Wisdom * The Professor and the Heretic * Howard and Porchey: The Real Curse of Tutankhamen’s Tomb * Shelley’s Poem and Captain Bill’s Hot Air * The Neighbourhood Bully * The Last Free Men * Behind the Zulu Mask * From Peace to Pizza * A Careful Rehearsal of Death * Moses’ Legs and Liars in Very High Places * Not Another Book on Egypt * An Invisible City * Unknown Soldiers and Last Resorts * Inside the Gates of Eden * Bull’s Head Soup * Islands in the Sand * Epilogue: Cry Me a River * Suggested Selected Reading List